altitude question (1 Viewer)

[wsdavies]

Isn't this the wrong time of year to move from Florida??

 

[Romer]

Not if your a skier or just like hanging out at the Lodge bar looking for skiers.

 

[tlcruiser]

Welcome to Colorado, a beautiful state!! I've been in Colorado Springs for about a year and a half, so I have some experience with this. I'm originally from Louisiana and go home every year. Both of my vehicles lose a bit of 'oomph' here in CO, even the BMW (V6, 2.8L), but you get used to it. I don't think there's anything you can do for it.

 

[Vitesse_6]

I remember when we drove over Imogene Pass it was a dog, But at 13,000+ feet I think its to be expected. You will miss the thick air but not the Hurricanes.
Good luck

 

[Pskhaat]

A supercharger will definetely be required. Or a turbo to adjust for altitude.

 

[GeoRoss]

Kind of a cool LC-altitude story. Some guys I work with have projects in Tibet where base elevation is 15,000 ft. Sometimes they get so high that the LC just can't go any farther even on just a shallow upslope. They just get as far as the cruiser will get them and hoof it from there.

It is something I had never considered before they told me about it. These are probably not maintained to the same degree as most people in this forum do, but it is mind blowing. These drivers are nuts too.


GeoRoss

 

[snowcruiser]

Jim Whitaker (mountaineering idol) said that Landcruisers have actually driven to the base camp at Mt. Everest at over 19,000 feet during a lecture for his book several years back. I even saw a pic. I've always noticed slightly better fuel economy in the higher mountains (8000+) with the loss of power but I have no explanation. Enjoy the mountains, I'm headed to the Wasatch tommorrow...

 

[Sangamo]

V6 in a BMW???

 

[mabrodis]

Isn't this the wrong time of year to move from Florida??

Maybe, but it's NEVER the wrong time of year to move to Colorado..

You'll lose power, but that's fine, cheapest gas is 85 octane (due to the elevation it is the same as 87 at sealevel I'm told). People who drink alot claim that with the lighter air up here if you get accustomed to drinking alot here you can't get drunk anywhere else (everywhere else has more oxygen, so you stay sober), no idea if that's true but it made for a funny routine at a comedy club.

Get useto seeing the sun...alot. Colorado averages 300 days of sun a year, more than California, even more than Hawaii, not sure about FL, but it's a rare day in CO when it's not bright sun and not a cloud in the sky, winter and summer.

Drain all your fluids and buy special 'high altitude' fluids. For example up here we don't use Mobil 1, we use Mobil 2.

What part of CO you moving to, it's a great state, and despite what alot of people think, there is plenty of room for many more people...just not in metro Denver..

 

[miked]

i once took a carbed ford escort up to mt Evans at 14,000 and made the mistake of shuting it off. i nearly drained the the battery trying to get it to start. i had to turn it downhill and pop the clutch a few times and then it would only sputter. first gear/pedal to the floor is the only way it made it up. the air was so thin that my friend started to turn blue.

i've also heard that it helps to advance the timing so many degrees for every so many feet up you go. not sure how much. i remember being in a v6 chevy sedan going over the pass on I70 and getting blown away by vw beetles that were tuned for the altitude.

 

[Whale]

What part of CO you moving to, it's a great state, and despite what alot of people think, there is plenty of room for many more people...just not in metro Denver..

Ditto here... love Durango. Miss the Texas gang, but if I can get this $#%^#&* house finished I should have time to play a little more and get to know some of the cruiser heads around here. If it's anywhere near here, just holler!

JJJ

 

[GeoRoss]

Jim Whitaker (mountaineering idol) said that Landcruisers have actually driven to the base camp at Mt. Everest at over 19,000 feet during a lecture for his book several years back. I even saw a pic. I've always noticed slightly better fuel economy in the higher mountains (8000+) with the loss of power but I have no explanation. Enjoy the mountains, I'm headed to the Wasatch tommorrow...

That is cool about the LC getting up there. The pics of the 'road' up to Everest basecamp I've seen get a bit narrow for anything other than animal or atv. When my buddies went up to basecamp they had to use horses or walk a least the last 10km. They chose the horses.

I guess I should clarify too, the LC's do fine at 15K, but start petering out at 18K-20K. Then again with these Tibetans drivers, the big thing is fuel so I could see how they set it up for fuel econ, horsepower be damned. They won't use 4WD until they are stuck bad, which usually means a couple of hours to days all to save fuel.

Ross

 

[outbackjack]

Ditto here... love Durango. Miss the Texas gang, but if I can get this $#%^#&* house finished I should have time to play a little more and get to know some of the cruiser heads around here. If it's anywhere near here, just holler!

JJJ

Well JJJ, its about time you paid me a visit! Long time no speaky

 

[PKP80]

Press 20more hours West on the Drive and have it all in CA; w/out the altitude sickness.

 

[Pskhaat]

I've a # of times taken my Cruisers to 14k+. They're definetely slow, but still absolutely drivable. I wouldn't think 15k wouldn't be significantly different. Granted you said not as well maintained, but...

(Resurrecting this old thread...)

 

[ryanjl]

In my experience, it seems like it takes the computer a few days to compensate for higher altitudes.

I'll drive from Wichita (1,800' elevation) to Breck (8-9000' elevation) in 9 hours. Going West out of Denver, the 80 will drive like a dog for the longest time. After a few days, it seems to be calibrated to the altitude a little more.

I've wondered if doing a "forced reset" of the ECU by pulling the EFI fuse for 15 minutes or so would help it calibrate sooner. Anyone?